More than 40 people have been found guilty of participating in mortgage fraud schemes that relied on straw buyers from Ohio to buy properties in the Panama City, Fla., area at inflated prices, resulting in $36 million in losses to lenders, WKYC TV reports.
A 50-year-old Akron man, Jack R. Coppenger, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for his role in the scheme, and prosecutors have asked that he pay $35 million in restitution.
Andrew D. Norman, 36, and Jason Herceg, who allegedly assisted Coppenger by using their brokerage company, Akron-based V.P. Equity, to prepare and submit falsified loan documents to banks, were previously sentenced to 40 months in prison and ordered to pay more than $14 million in restitution. Source: wkyc.com.